The monochord has always been performed at Vietnamese traditional music programmes for foreign tourists and diplomatic corps as well as during the tours abroad of Vietnamese artists. The sound of the monochord resonates a profound feeling from the bottom of the heart, particularly among those living far from the motherland, thanks to its soft, charming, and emotional sound.
The instrument has drawn much attention from many musicians, instrumentalists and musical researchers. According to Associate Prof., Dr. Nguyen Binh Dinh, Director of the Vietnamese Institute for Musicology, among single-stringed instruments in the world, the Vietnamese dan bau stands out from others as it is the only one that can produce overtones. Despite having no key in the string, the instrument can reach any musical pitch and demonstrate both vibrato and melisma techniques, making it perfect for conveying Vietnamese traditional melodies. By pushing the flexible wooden rod, the artist can adjust the stretch or slack of the string; thus the dan bau is the only stringed instrument in the world that can emit a basic chord with different pitches just by one pluck of the string.
The configuration of the Dan bau has been experimented with by Vietnamese artists in order to update and diversify the instruments sound. Originally, it was made of just four parts: a bamboo tube, a wooden rod, a coconut shell half, and a silk string. The string was stretched over a sound box, tied on one end of the rod, which is perpendicularly attached to the bamboo. The coconut shell was attached to the rod, serving as a resonator.
At present, the bamboo has been replaced by a wooden soundboard and an electric guitar string has replaced the traditional silk string. Also, the majority of dan bau instruments now have modern tuning mechanisms, so the base pitch of the string can be adjusted and last longer. With the various adjustments, ‘dan bau’ now can be played on a large stage rather than indoor space as it used to be; the instrument can also accompany other musical instruments as well as electro orchestra or symphony orchestra.
Since 1956, ‘dan bau’ has been taught at the Vietnam National Academy of Music, paving the way for other professional musical schools to encourage traditional music training, particularly for the traditional single-stringed instrument. Many foreign students have applied for the training course of ‘dan bau’. The instrument has also helped to gain fame for many Vietnamese instrumentalists, such as Manh Thang, Xuan Ba, Thanh Tam, and Doan Anh Tuan.
The first Dan bau Music Festival was organised by the Vietnamese Institute for Musicology in 1978, attracting the participation of many instrumentalists and artists of different ages. After a long time of being put on hiatus, the festival was held for the second time in December 2014 by the Vietnam National Academy of Music and Vietnam’s ‘Dan bau’ club, bringing together numerous professional and amateur monochord players from both home and abroad.
At the end of October this year, the Vietnamese Institute for Musicology hosted a symposium discussing the monochord and its role in Vietnamese culture. Delegates at the event agreed that it was time for Vietnam to compile a dossier seeking recognition for dan bau as an intangible cultural heritage of humankind.
People’s Artist Thanh Tam, one of the founders of the Vietnam Dan bau Club, pointed out six arguments in favour of the proposal. First, the dan bau is a traditional musical instrument of the Vietnamese people, it has ancient origins and plays a certain role in Vietnam’s social life. Second, dan bau has consolidated its firm position in today’s life, it has been recongised and taught at professional musical training facilities as an indispensable musical instrument of the country over the past century. Third, dan bau has made its presence known in many orchestras and theatres across the country. Fourth, dan bau has been introduced abroad, as a representative of Vietnamese culture and has drawn much interest from foreigners. Fifthly, thanks to its uniqueness in performance, dan bau has enriched the diversity of the world’s collection of musical instruments. And last but not least, the recognition for dan bau will help preserve its age-old value and assist Vietnamese music to integrate into world contemporary music.
